Opinion: Stepping Out of Bounds

The football players start off with a strong season. Some fans, however, are off to a weak one. Inappropriate language and behavior should not be used in the student section at football games.

Football games, or any sporting event for that matter, should be a family event. Games typically have small children attending who do not need to hear bad language  – some who are, at times, intoxicated. These children look up to the students then they excitedly read rude and vulgar signs and hear chants designed to sound like cuss words. Parents should feel comfortable to bring their children to watch their older sibling or big cousin play without the fear their child might be exposed to inappropriate actions and chats by the student section. Football, although competitive, should be friendly. It shouldn’t be acceptable to be aggressively rude to the other team.

While football games act as a casual social event, for the players, these games mean a lot. Football players practice all week and wait in heavy anticipation for Friday nights. While players appreciate the presence of students in the student section, when bad language even upsets the referees, it interferes with the game. Football players do not show up to choir concerts, art shows or swim meets in this manner, so it shouldn’t be acceptable for anyone else in the student body to do the same.

Friday night football games usually attract not only residents of Mansfield, but surrounding communities. In this instance, the few teenagers in the student section represent the thousands of students and hundreds of staff members who make up our entire school. Unfortunately, Legacy has the reputation of being rednecks, and nobody should be blamed for thinking so when the behavior at football games proves the stereotype correct.

Some students complain about our lack of dances besides prom, but if we show this type of behavior at football games, dances and other freedoms should be completely out of the question.

The amount of school spirit and pride that our student section shows weekly stands out immensely. Each year school spirit rises. And kudos for the large amount of fans supporting our team in a classy manner. However, it should never be okay to transfer that spirit into embarrassing, reckless behavior, bad language, inappropriate chants or degrading the other team. Legacy High School has a higher standard.

Football games should be fun, but they should be fun for everyone.